Airport master planning is a critical tool in determining needs and development at individual airports. An airport Master Plan is a comprehensive study of an airport and usually describes the short-, medium-, and long-term development plans to meet future aviation demand. Elements of an airport Master Plan typically include an Existing Conditions portion that provides an inventory of pertinent data for use in subsequent Plan elements; an Aviation Forecast portion that estimates aeronautical demand for short-, medium-, and long-term time frames; a Facility Requirements portion that assesses the ability of the existing airport, both airside and landside, to support the forecast demand. Additionally, the Master Plan may also include an Environmental Considerations portion to provide a clear understanding of the environmental requirements needed to move forward with each project in the recommended development program. Based upon the facility requirements and considering the environmental considerations, a set of development alternatives are considered before settling on a single alternative that is recommended.
The Master Plan also includes an Airport Layout Plan (ALP), which can include a narrative portion accompanying a set of drawings, which are generally based upon the recommended alternative. The narrative portion of the ALP will typically describe ALP development criteria and the rationale for the development shown on the ALP. The drawing portion provides a graphic depiction of the long-term development plan for the airport, and includes current and future airport facilities. The drawings include required airport feature classifications, description labels, imaginary surfaces, Runway Protection Zones, Runway Safety Areas and basic airport and runway data tables.
Current methods of preparing the Master Plan and ALP typically consume hundreds and sometimes thousands of man-hours. The current method is also static and not easily changed. If a change to the airport, the industry or a new opportunity that isn't included in the Master Plan and ALP presents itself; another lengthy planning process is required to analyze the potential for accommodating the new change or opportunity.